Miguel

Peruvian artisan Miguel specializes in recycling auto parts and metal into beautiful sculptures. He would like to invest in the purchase of new tools and equipment to process the metal pieces for his art. He has been selling through NOVICA since 2007. This is his story:

"I'm a self-taught and impassioned artist; I was only a 13-year-old child when I began to make my own toys. I used to tear apart other toys and use their components to create my own versions. That's how I got into making sculptures, but this time by recycling mechanical parts. One day, when I was working on the sculpture of a medieval knight, I was missing some pieces so I went to a friend's auto-shop. He said I could take anything I needed from a metal box he had lying around. Three days later my friend came by and asked about some pieces he needed, which he had left outside the box. Needless to say, I had taken them, but they were already welded into the sculpture. I had to go with my friend to meet the owner of the truck for which those parts were originally intended, and explain to him they were now part of a sculpture. Rather than getting angry he was fascinated and bought it! He christened the sculpture, 'The Son of the Mercedes,' because those parts were intended for a Mercedes Benz."

"I would like to thank you for your continued support of my art. With this microcredit, I'll be able to continue developing my original sculptures."

Additional Information

Important information about Novica

Novica is an e-commerce website that allows artisans around the world to sell unique, high-quality goods directly to consumers. It also offers small loans to help artisans in the developing world start and grow their businesses. It’s possible to buy goods created by the artisans you help fund on the Novica website.

Repayments on Novica loans are tied to artisan revenue. This means that if an artisan has a good month, they will pay back more -- or less during slower months. To accommodate this, all repayments on this loan are due at the end of the loan term. Any repayments received before this deadline will be considered pre-payments, but will still be distributed to lenders as usual.

Because Novica is not a microfinance institution, Kiva’s risk rating system is not applicable. Kiva has conducted onsite due diligence, and Kiva’s Investment Committee approved the organization as a partner. Novica offers artisans loans at 0% interest.